Electronic systems are typically implemented to achieve or maintain high-level goals. The high-level goals include, for instance, meeting the requirements set forth in a service level agreement (SLA), such as, minimum available bandwidth, minimum uptimes, and maximum energy consumption goals. In addition to achieving or maintaining the high-level goals, optimization schemes have been proposed to substantially minimize the energy consumed by the electronic systems.
Various metrics have been proposed for achieving and maintaining the high-level goals, as well as, for substantially minimizing the amount of energy consumed by the electronic systems. These metrics are normally defined exclusively for a specific purpose and therefore, if the high-level goal changes, the utility of the metric with respect to the high-level goal decreases. In addition, the metrics are normally defined a priori, and thus often fail to appropriately change with changing goals. Thus, although conventionally formulated metrics are typically capable of achieving and maintaining the high-level goals when the electronic systems are initially operated, these metrics are unable to maintain the high-level goals, or optimization goals, as conditions change with respect to the electronic systems.
It would thus be beneficial to be able to achieve the high-level goals in a substantially optimized manner without suffering from all of the drawbacks and disadvantages associated with conventionally formulated metrics.